“I think you might be heading for a burnout.”
A colleague pointed out after hearing me a few times say that I’m tired.
I hadn’t even thought about that until she mentioned it.
It isn’t my first time experiencing burnout, and I’m always shocked at how I have such a hard time being aware when it’s happening.
Many of us, myself included, believe that burnout is a result of too much work.
But in this recent one, I took a lot of time to think about it, and discovered that it actually isn’t work the reason I’m tired, it’s my ignored emotions.
Numbing My Emotions
Work and career have always been my strongest castle. When everything is burning in other areas, I know I can go and hide in there. I did exactly the same thing this time.
This year has been emotionally intense for me.
My mom had a life-threatening heart surgery at the beginning of the year (thank God, she is doing well now).
In Spring, I went through a messy engagement breakup, because the other side was not accepting the end.
And I lost a few friends in both of these experiences.
It is true what they say, you learn who the real friends are in times of need. Grateful to learn the truth, but painful nonetheless.